Saturday, 16 December 2017

Being the only human in the house, I pay for everything, and as I don't currently have much money, it usually means that after rent and bills, it would be ideal if we could live on air as there's no money left for much more.

Due to budget restrictions and ethical reasons, I am already somewhat "living lagom", but I will take this as a challenge towards fine tuning everything as much as I can 😄

We were asked to make a new year's resolution, which was difficult for me as there were so many potential options..

My first thought was to grow food indoors, but as I was browsing the IKEA catalogue, I soon discovered that the €100 budget (which we are given for this project) would not be nearly enough, and I couldn't afford to pay any extra. After all, my only suitable indoor grow spot, is the kitchen window sill, which is already full. So, to grow anything else than my current herbs, I would need garden shelving, pots, lights, etc. It's also not just about not having enough funds for it all, I don't really have the space for it, and I have cats.......

I haven't yet received my items, but here's a walkthrough of my Live Lagom shopping list;

Mulig drying rack was my "#1 item" - I already have a similar drying rack, but I have to machine dry all towels and sheets as it would take too long to air dry them on the rack, and I would need the rack for my clothes. So, if I was to have two racks, I could air dry everything!

Unfortunately, it was out of stock, but I selected another drying rack (more about the replacement items in the end of my list)..

Jäll white laundry bags with stands, are a nicer way of laundry management than my current plastic bag system..

Förtrolig food containers are something I'm really excited about! They are glass containers, so can be used as oven dishes (without the plastic lids, obviously), but they are also great for storing food in the fridge, with the air tight plastic lids.

I am getting four Förtrolig dishes, two in 31x23x9 cm, and two in 17x23x9 cm. They are the largest options, and will be good for batch cooking. That way, I can cook enough food for several days while the oven is hot, and then just microwave meals on the following days.

Vuku wardrobe is not the prettiest piece, but there is nowhere in the house to hang clothes, other than an open rack, which is not really an option when you have cats, and lots of spiders..

This will go upstairs in the bedroom, where I don't spend time, so I don't really need this to look all pretty. And it's not exactly ugly, either!

Toftbo bath mats! I congratulated myself for remembering this long time dream while creating my list! 😃 Every time I've been to IKEA, I've pawed these über-soft bath mats, dreaming of stitching two of them together to create a soft and huggy pillow case.. So, I'm getting two, for that purpose!

Vitsippa pillow, to go with the Toftbo mats.. This will be something soft and warm for cosy sofa time ♥

And finally, a grey/black Gurli throw.. Saving on heating, with the help of extra blankets..

Like I mentioned, somewhere above, I didn't get the Mulig drying rack, and had to get replacement items. I got these;

Frost drying rack, which doesn't look as sturdy as Mulig would have been, but on the other hand, this has more space for smaller items like socks and underwear, so I will be using this one with my clothes, and the older rack with sheets and towels.

As I still had a bit of money left, I decided to get another Gurli throw, but in a different colour - dark orange. You can never have enough blankets, especially with cats in the house..

I should be getting my items sometime next week, and I can't wait! 😃

We're also going to have a workshop soon, where we will probably make draft blockers. Much needed as there is an icy draft on the floor, and my feet are often cold, even with double woolly socks on..

Friday, 1 December 2017

The house is smelling lovely as I've been simmering lemons and orange, with cardamom, and a little bit of fresh mint.. I just have it on low heat, and I keep adding water and occasionally giving it a stir..

I've also opened the first doors in the advent calendars.. This one is postcard size..

Traditional style..

Wintery nature and a bit of Christmas magic..

This is a Finnish Christmas tree - they're celebrating 100 years of independence, this year, and the independence day is 6th December.. #Suomi100